Summary of Sherry Sontag & Christopher Drew's Blind Man's Bluff

Everest Media

Description

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book.
Sample Book Insights:
#1 Harris Austin was a radio man who had been trained to snatch Soviet military signals and electronic communications out of thin air. He was going to be part of the crew of the U. S. submarine Cochino, which was about to become an experimental spy boat.
#2 Benitez was shocked to hear that Austin would be drilling holes in the submarine’s hull to install the spy equipment. He was going to take this to his command. At the very least, he was not going to stay and argue with Austin.
#3 The United States had a new adversary in the Soviet Union, and people were terrified of the means of victory. The Soviets had come into possession of a few German U-boats, highly advanced subs with snorkels and new sophisticated types of sonar.
#4 The United States was also preparing for the ultimate in undersea one-upmanship: nuclear-powered submarines that could stay underwater indefinitely without ever having to snorkel.

Sujets

• Military
• United States

Informations

• Publié par: Everest Media LLC
• Date de parution: 18 avril 2022
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781669386216
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

Insights on Sherry Sontag and Christopher Drew & et al.'s Blind Man's Bluff
Contents Insights from Chapter 1 Insights from Chapter 2 Insights from Chapter 3 Insights from Chapter 4 Insights from Chapter 5 Insights from Chapter 6 Insights from Chapter 7 Insights from Chapter 8 Insights from Chapter 9 Insights from Chapter 10 Insights from Chapter 11 Insights from Chapter 12
Insights from Chapter 1

#1

Harris Austin was a radio man who had been trained to snatch Soviet military signals and electronic communications out of thin air. He was going to be part of the crew of the U. S. submarine Cochino, which was about to become an experimental spy boat.

#2

Benitez was shocked to hear that Austin would be drilling holes in the submarine’s hull to install the spy equipment. He was going to take this to his command. At the very least, he was not going to stay and argue with Austin.

#3

The United States had a new adversary in the Soviet Union, and people were terrified of the means of victory. The Soviets had come into possession of a few German U-boats, highly advanced subs with snorkels and new sophisticated types of sonar.

#4

The United States was also preparing for the ultimate in undersea one-upmanship: nuclear-powered submarines that could stay underwater indefinitely without ever having to snorkel.

#5

The Navy had sent two fleet boats, the USS Sea Dog and the USS Blackfin, into the Bering Sea in 1948 to see if they could intercept Soviet radio communications and count how quickly propeller blades turned on Soviet destroyers and merchant ships.

#6

Austin was a radioman, but he worked for the Naval Security Group, the cryptological service that had intercepted and decoded crucial Japanese Navy communications during World War II. The crew knew that he was not a common radioman.

#7

Austin was very popular on board Cochino, and he played a mean game of acey-deucey. He brought war stories from his cruiser days, and he spent his first few hours chugging up through the Norwegian Sea north of the Arctic Circle.

#8

The black box that Austin was operating captured the higher frequency bands of a launch in progress. If something were happening, he should be able to hear it. He was hoping to record some Soviet missile telemetry.

#9

On August 24, Cochino played hide-and-seek with Tusk. The two subs began to learn how to become hunters and killers. Cochino spotted Tusk off her starboard beam, and began moving ahead at snorkel depth. It was her turn to hide.

#10

The crew of Cochino tried to save the crew of Tusk, but the batteries began exploding, releasing highly combustible hydrogen gas. The men on Tusk were in serious trouble. Only by evacuating the crew could Cochino save them.

#11

The crew of the boat was still trying to save Tusk, who had now been on the boat for almost an hour. They finally reached him, and he was barely alive. The crew took him to the bridge and tried to warm him up.

#12

As the men in the forward torpedo room began to pass out from the gases, it became clear that everyone there would have to come back out on the perilous deck. As many as possible would crowd onto the bridge.

#13

As the hours went on, Benitez realized that he had no other choice but to send Philo and Shelton across the water to flag messages on Tusk. He was still determined not to abandon ship.

#14

On Tusk, the rescue mission was ongoing. The horror was becoming worse, as two of Tusk ’s crew members had time to put on foul-weather gear, which was sewn directly onto their suits, and now that gear was conspiring to drown them.

#15

The disaster had its first casualties six hours after the initial explosion. The men were gassed, and Benitez could not risk exposing all the men crammed into the sail to the same fate. He had to wait until the seas were calm before he could get the wounded over to Tusk, which could then race ahead and get the men to Hammerfest, Norway, and a hospital.

#16

The crew had to transfer the remaining three men to Tusk. The captain decided he would go down with them if Wright didn’t make it out. He was aware that the sub was flooding, but he had to try.

#17

The rest of the crew made it to the Tusk, and the waves pulled the subs apart so far that several of the lines between them parted. Tusk made her way back, but it was clear the remaining lines would not last long.

#18

The loss of Cochino made headlines in the United States and in the Soviet Union. The Soviet Navy newspaper Red Fleet published an article accusing the United States of undertaking suspicious training near Soviet waters and of sending Cochino near Murmansk to spy.
Insights from Chapter 2

#1

The final stop on the USS Gudgeon’s tour of duty in 1957 was in Yokosuka, Japan. Here, submarine crews could prepare to sneak close to Soviet shores. They would return after their missions to celebrate, relax, and prepare to go out again.

#2

The top priority of any spy sub captain was indications and warning. Fleet commanders would grade the captains on how long they kept their eyes and ears up out of the water. The more daring the attempt, the higher the grade.

#3

The men of the Gudgeon were the Navy’s chief snoops and eavesdroppers. They were to monitor the enemy, bring home the intelligence, and warn if a sub was detected by Soviet ships and coastal installations.

#4

The spooks on board Gudgeon were listening for any signs that their approach had been detected. They were also collecting air samples and snorkeling, which allowed them to bring in fresh air and exhale carbon monoxide and other noxious gases.

#5

On August 19, 1957, Gudgeon was underway off the coast of Soviet Pacific Coast time. The submarine began to dive, and the alarm rang.